Pocketbook and method of manufacture



Nov. 16, 1965 G. AscARRuNz 3,217,613

POCKETBOOK AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURE Filed oct. 7, 196s United States Patent O 3,217,613 POCKETBOUK AND METHOD F MANUFACTURE Guillermo Ascarruuz, 89-20 55th Ave., Elmhurst, Long Island, N.Y. Filed Oct. 7, 1963, Ser. No. 314,108 3 Claims. (Cl. 93-1) This invention relates to pocketbooks such as wallets and the like more specifically to a novel and improved Wallet and method of manufacture.

One object of the invention resides in the provision of a novel and improved wallet that is characterized by its simplicity of manufacture, low cost and durability.

Another object of the invention resides in the provision of a novel and improved wallet that may be fabricated of a variety of materials and that does not require such steps as sewing, gluing or other similar fastening operations.

Still another object of the invention resides in a novel and improved wallet formed of a single folded sheet of paper,

A still further object of the invention resides in a novel and improved method for manufacturing wallets.

The above and the other objects of the invention will become more apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings forming part of this application.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a sheet of material preparatory to the formation of the wallet.

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of the sheet of material shown in FIGURE 1 and illustrating the intitial step in the formation of the wallet.

FIGURE 3 is a plan View showing the second step in the formation of the wallet in accordance with the invention.

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view showing the nal folds made to produce the finished wallet.

FIGURE S is a front perspective view of the completed wallet in accordance with the invention.

FIGURE 6 is a back view of the wallet shown in FIG- URE 5.

FIGURE 7 is a modified form of the Wallet shown in FIGURES and 6 which includes a stitfening liner.

FIGURE 8 is a greatly enlarged cross-sectional viewI of the form of the invention shown in FIGURE 7 and taken along the line 8-8 thereof.

The wallet or pocketbook in accordance with the invention is fabricated of a single sheet of material such as a durable paper, plastic, fabric or other similar material. The entire Wallet is produced merely by folding the sheet of material along predetermined lines and interlocking certain folded portions to produce the completed wallet. The formation of the wallet does not require the utilization of stitching procedures, glue or other type of fastening means and the resultant wallet includes provision for holding paper currency and has four pockets that can be used for cards, pictures and the like. By fabricating the wallet of a transparent material, the items in the various pockets can be readily observed. For instance, with the use of a transparent material, pictures can be inserted in two of the pockets so that they can be readily observed on the outsides of the Wallet when it is folded in the customary manner for carrying. It will become clear as the description proceeds that the wallet can be fabricated at very low cost and provides an attractive, convenient and extremely thin Wallet that is convenient to use and does not have the bulk of known wallets.

Reference is now made to the drawings and particularly FIGURES 1 through 5 showing the steps of forming a ice wallet from a single sheet of material whether it be plastic, paper or fabric. The sheet of material is generally denoted by the numeral 10 and the dotted lines 11 through 18 illustrate the lines along which the sheet is folded in the process of forming the wallet. In actual practice, the lines 11 through 18 would be score lines to facilitate folding by operators and thereby greatly speed the process of forming the wallet. It is also evident that the Wallet can be fabricated by automatic processes, in which case the score lines would not be necessary and the folding would be done by automatic equipment.

The first step in the process of forming the wallet in accordance with the invention constitutes folding of the corners 11', 12', 13 and 14 inwardly along dotted lines 11 through 14 respectively to provide the structure shown in FIGURE 2. It will be observed that the edges 11a and 13a lie slightly above the horizontai score line 17, while the edges 12a and 14a lie slightly below the line 18. It will be seen that this procedure facilitates making of the final fold without unnecessarily stressing the material along the fold line. After the corner portions have been folded as shown in FIGURE 2, the end sections of the sheet on the outer sides of the lines 15 and 16 are then folded inwardly as shown in FIGURE 3 with the folded corner portions 11 through 14 lying against the face of the sheet 10. It will be observed that the edges 19 and 20 as viewed in FIGURE 3 will be in slightly spaced relationship one with the other. It is preferable that the distance between these edges be of the order of 1A of an inch, and if desired, these edges may be curved to produce added space therebetween for purposes to be hereinafter discussed.

When the folded structure as shown in FIGURE 3 has been completed, the portions above the fold line 17 and below the fold line 18 are folded toward the'back side as shown in FIGURE 3 and along the lines 17 and 18 respectively. This step is shown more clearly in FIG- URE 4 wherein the structure has been turned over and the end portions have been partially folded to extend outwardly toward the viewer. The folded end portions are denoted generally by the numerals 21 and 22. The portion 22 as shown in FIGURE 4 is folded at against the central section generally denoted by the numeral 23. The section 21 is then inserted behind the edges 12 and 14 of the section 22 and into the pockets formed by reason of the folds shown in FIGURE 3. When the section 21 is inserted Wholly within the pockets in section 22, the wallet is completed, and a structure such as that shown in FIGURES 5 and 6 results. With this arrangement, it is clear that the entire top edge of the wallet as shown in FIGURE 5 is open for the receipt of bills or paper currency behind the edges 12 and 14. In addition, the wallet includes pockets 24 and 25 accessible from the ends of the wallet and pockets 26 and 27 accessible from the center of the back side of the wallet. It will be observed that the openings of pockets 26 and 27 are defined by edges 19 and 20 as shown in FIGURE 3. Thus, to facilitate access to these pockets, the edges 19 and 20 could be cut away as shown by the dotted lines 19 and 20 in FIGURE 6. This may readily be accomplished in the formation of the original sheet 10 prior to any of the folding operations.

In some instances, it may be desirable to provide a stitfening member within the wallet. For this purpose, a sheet of material 28, such as cardboard, plastic or the like, may be enclosed in the wallet during the folding operation. The stiifening member would be slightly smaller than the area bounded by the lines 15 through 18 as shown in FIGURE 1, and the stiffener would preferably be placed in position between the lines 15 through 18 after completion of the step shown in FIGURE 2.

The stiffener will be locked in place after completion of the folding steps shown in FIGURES 3 and 4, and a portion of it will be observed in the finished wallet in the space between the edges 19 and 2t) on the back side thereof. If desired, the Wallet can be fabricated as described in connection with FIGURES 1 through 5, and upon completion thereof, a folded stiffening member can be inserted into the pockets 26 and 27 when the wallet is folded in the normal carrying position.

While only one embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it is apparent that alterations, modifications and changes may be made without departing from the true scope and spirit thereof as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. The method of forming a wallet from a rectangular sheet of material comprising the steps of folding the corners inwardly to form an eight-sided regular contiguration, folding each end inwardly to bring the unfolded end edge portions approximately to the center of the sheet and with the folded corners lying between the last said folds and the underlying face of the sheet, folding approximately one third of one side of the resultant structure along a line at 90 to the end folds and in a direction opposite to the end folds, folding the other side of the resultant structure along a line parallel to and adjoining the edge of the last said folded portion and then inserting said folded -other side into the pockets of the underlying folded portion to complete the wallet.

2. The method of forming a wallet from a rectangular sheet of material having end edges and side edges comprising the steps of folding the corners of said sheet inwardly along diagonal lines to form an eight-sided rectangular configuration and with the distance between the parallel edges of the folded corners on each end being at least equal to one third the width of the sheet and the distance between parallel edges of the folded corner portions on each side edge being at least half the length of the sheet, folding the ends of the sheet inwardly to bring the edges to approximately the center of the sheet and forming a resultant structure having a length approximately half the length of the original sheet and with the folded corner portions lying between the folded end porions and the sheet, folding one side portion along a line parallel to the side edge and spaced inwardly therefrom a distance about one third of ,the width of the sheet, said side portion being folded in a direction opposite to the folds of the end portions, folding the other side portion along a line parallel to the side edges and positioned inwardly from the side edge a distance of about one third of the width of the sheet, the last said side portion being folded upon the first said side portion and then inserting the last said folded side portion into pockets on the first said side portion to complete the wallet.

3. The method of forming a wallet from a rectangular sheet of material having side edges and end edges comprising the steps of folding end portions inwardly to bring the end edges into meeting relationship along a line centrally of said sheet and then folding the side portions each being approximately one-third the width of the material inwardly one upon the other and in a direction opposite to the folds of said end portions to form pockets, then inserting one of said side portions into the pocket in the other side portion, and then folding the resulting structure along a central axis parallel to the lines of fold of said end portions.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 276,962 5/1883 De Quillfeldt 150-32 939,673 11/1909 Cummings et al 150-32 1,014,104 l/1912 Walsh 150--38 1,305,569 6/1919 Smith 150-32 1,855,656 4/1932 Voglmayer 93-1 2,119,122 5/1938 St. Thomas et al 150-38 2,593,092 4/1952 Bergstein 93-1 3,048,210 8/1962 Fook 150-38 FRANK E. BAILEY, Primary Examiner.

FRANKLIN T. GARRETT, BERNARD STICKNEY,

Examiners. 

1. THE METHOD OF FORMING A WALLET FROM A RECTANGULAR SHEET OF MATERIAL COMPRISING THE STEPS OF FOLDING THE CORNERS INWARDLY TO FORM AN EIGHT-SIDED REGULAR CONFIGURATION, FOLDING EACH END INWARDLY TO BRING THE UNFOLDED END EDGE PORTIONS APPROXIMATELY TO THE CENTER OF THE SHEET AND WITH THE FOLDED CORNERS LYING BETWEEN THE LAST SAID FOLDS AND THE UNDERLYING FACE OF THE SHEET, FOLDING APPROXIMATELY ONE THIRD OF ONE SIDE OF THE RESULTANT STRUCTURE ALONG A LINE AT 90* TO THE END FOLDS AND IN A DIRECTION OPPOSITE TO THE END FOLDS, FOLDING THE OTHER SIDE OF THE RESULTANT STRUCTURE ALONG A LINE PARALLEL TO AND ADJOINING THE EDGE OF THE LAST SAID FOLDED PORTION AND THEN INSERTING SAID FOLDED OTHER SIDE INTO THE POCKETS OF THE UNDERLYING FOLDED PORTION TO COMPLETE THE WALLET. 